Eastertide
June 1, 2014

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.  

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. — Romans 12:9-16b

 Paul presumes in writing this part of his letter to the Romans that the Romans knew that they are responsible for their own behavior.  Do we know that today?

C. S. Lewis in his book The Four Loves describes his encounter with a rather pesky neighbor whose interactions with others made her very difficult to love. He took seriously the idea that all Christians need to let love be genuine but his animosity toward this woman made it impossible for him to love her in the way he knew he should. He decided that the best he could do with God’s help was to act like he loved her all the time. He, therefore, was always gracious to her, conversed with her appropriately when he would rather not, and otherwise extended his love, though unfelt, to her. To his amazement one day after engaging in conversation with the neighbor, he suddenly realized that he had come to love her genuinely. By really listening to her he came to a better understanding of who she was and perhaps why she acted the way she did. I have always wondered if she too benefited from being truly loved and altered her inappropriate behavior.  It doesn’t matter in any case, genuine love loves anyway.

The instructions Paul shares in our scripture today are excellent and when we find it impossible to follow them faithfully, we need to return to the source of love and refuel.

Prayer: Spirit of the Living God enable me to love those I find unlovable. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.